Roy Hodgson is convinced Arsenal's Jack Wilshere is the answer for England

There has been an inevitably experimental feel to Jack Wilshere’s deployment at the base of England’s midfield diamond but Roy Hodgson is adamant the Arsenal player could thrive there against the world’s best.

Five things we learnt at Wembley

Five things we learnt at Wembley

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1. Wayne Rooney has joined England’s greats

The debate over whether Wayne Rooney has fully realised his potential on the international stage will continue for some time but becoming only the ninth man to reach 100 England caps puts him in the pantheon of the greats by definition. He is the youngest man to reach that milestone and although he has struggled to maintain the standards set in his debut tournament at Euro 2004, Rooney’s durability and commitment were rightly acknowledged tonight in the award of a golden cap from Sir Bobby Charlton. His flash of quality to earn and then convert a 59th minute penalty was one of the few bright moments England created in the final third. Aged 29 - and now with 44 goals from 100 caps - Rooney has admitted Euro 2016 could be his last tournament and once the formality of qualification is completed, the Manchester United striker will have another chance to silence his doubters once and for all.

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2. The NFL is good for the FA but not England

Last Sunday’s NFL game between Jacksonville Jaguars and Dallas Cowboys was the latest in a series of money-spinning matches for the Football Association but the effect on England was obvious from the outset. Aside from the faded branding “NFL INTERNATIONAL SERIES” still visible throughout this game, the playing surface was terrible, particularly in central areas. England laboured in possession as players on both sides made individual errors on the ball. Hodgson had feared the worst before kick-off and he was proved right. The impressive crowd of 82,305 were desperately subdued throughout but they were given little to enthuse about until the game suddenly jolted into life with Jordan Henderson’s 57th minute own goal. England had problems in possession that could not solely be explained by the surface but it is difficult to conclude anything other than the NFL game not only made their task harder, but it damaged this as a spectacle.

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3. England’s midfield diamond lacks width

Roy Hodgson has stuck with a midfield diamond system ever since using it to great effect as England won their crucial opening qualifier in Switzerland so it is safe to assume this is the shape he intends to use at Euro 2016. The benefits are that it makes England more compact against talented opponents but against teams that prioritise defending, the overt focus on attacking through central areas can make them predictable. England’s travails against Estonia and San Marino were replicated here and compounded by the uneven surface. Although debutant Nathaniel Clyne and Kieran Gibbs tried to get forward from full-back - as the latter did to notable effect in the build up to England’s third goal - England were desperately poor in the first half due to a lack of width and benefitted from Slovenia tiring as the match wore on.

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4. Welbeck has given Hodgson a welcome headache

Daniel Sturridge’s absence has been keenly felt at Liverpool but Danny Welbeck’s new lease of life at Arsenal has helped him thrive with England. Welbeck has started England’s last four matches and scored five times, the last of which killed this game as a contest and finished off a fine move involving a fine one-two with Raheem Sterling. Sturridge would expect to start England’s next competitive qualifier against Lithuania at the end of March, fitness pending, but while Welbeck is not consistently clinical in front of goal, his current form gives Hodgson food for thought. Saido Berahino could also press his case against Scotland on Tuesday but he is obviously inexperienced and with Rickie Lambert struggling for game-time at Liverpool and Jermain Defoe apparently frozen out while in the United States, Welbeck has firmly established himself as Sturridge’s main rival to lead England’s attack.

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5. Roll on the return of the Premier League

There is a degree of acceptance that England remain a work in progress and patience is necessary for Hodgson to cultivate a team capable of challenging at Euro 2016 but that does not excuse the fact this was another evening desperately short on entertainment. Tuesday’s encounter against Scotland in Glasgow promises to be an occasion far higher in intensity given the obvious geography and history involved but aside from national bragging rights and 48 hours of referendum jokes, the domestic game’s return cannot come soon enough. England have virtually qualified from Group E already with this victory and so there are likely to be several more nights like this to come. Hodgson has to prove it will all be worth it in France in two years’ time.

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At 5ft 7in and slight of frame, the 22-year-old does not look a natural midfield enforcer while his attacking instincts are at odds with the discipline required to give England the right balance in central areas.

Wilshere openly admits as such, citing a desire to study the finest exponents of his newly acquired position, Javier Mascherano and Xabi Alonso among them. However, Hodgson believes that his performances so far warrant a crack at an elite side, who will test England’s attempts to retain possession effectively and prove defensively robust.

“At the moment, I don’t think we can have any doubts about Jack’s ability to play in that position,” said England manager Hodgson (left). “Against any opposition? We don’t know but at the moment he can only do as well as he is doing against the opposition he faces.

“If one day I play him there against different opposition and he and the team get absolutely slaughtered then we’d have to think about it.

“But I don’t think we can start thinking about it [Jack playing there against top teams] before it happens.”

England have lacked a bonafide defensive midfielder for some time.

Owen Hargreaves threatened to represent a reasonable approximation under Sven-Goran Eriksson — particularly at the 2006 World Cup — but injury restricted him to just 42 caps while he was also sometimes the victim, along with Paul Scholes, of the attempts to create alchemy between Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.

However, speaking about the position in detail, Hodgson insists that Wilshere is not a square peg in a round hole but more the leading candidate among several options. He spoke enthusiastically about Michael Carrick, who was forced to withdraw from the squad due to a groin injury, and, notably, name-dropped the uncapped James Ward-Prowse of Southampton, who is sidelined by a fractured foot.

“We’ve been a bit unlucky this time around because Michael Carrick is a player we have always liked and can help us in that position,” said Hodgson, whose team take on Scotland tomorrow.

“He was called back into the squad and I was looking forward to seeing him, maybe not in this game but in the Scotland game, but we lost him as well [to injury].

“Ward-Prowse is another player we think has got an interesting future but he got injured. To some extent, I don’t think I will be stuck for choice. But I can only really answer the question when one day we play better opposition — and we will — and if the team and the formation have not worked, that might be the time when we say ‘can we get away with this?’

“At the moment, they are certainly working towards it and the one thing I think we do, when we lose the ball and don’t produce the right pass, we don’t half win it back quickly. So you wouldn’t want to be a defender against us because we don’t give them much time on the ball.”